3.5 न हि कश्िचत्क्षणमपि जातु तिष्ठत्यकर्मकृत्। कार्यते ह्यवशः कर्म सर्वः प्रकृतिजैर्गुणैः
na hi kaśicatkṣaṇamapi jātu tiṣṭhatyakarmakṛt | kāryate hyavaśaḥ karma sarvaḥ prakṛtijairguṇaiḥ
Word meanings
na—not;hi—certainly;kaśhchit—anyone;kṣhaṇam—a moment;api—even;jātu—ever;tiṣhṭhati—can remain;akarma-kṛit—without action;kāryate—are performed;hi—certainly;avaśhaḥ—helpless;karma—work;sarvaḥ—all;prakṛiti-jaiḥ—born of material nature;guṇaiḥ—by the qualities
Verse audio
Divine Verses of the Bhagavad Gita • Swami Dayananda Saraswati
Translators5/5
My Personal Gita
For, no one can ever remain, even for a moment, as a non-performer of action; because everyone, not being master of themselves, is forced to perform action by the strands born of the Prakriti (Material cause).
He cannot even for a moment remain really inactive, for the Qualities of Nature will compel him to act whether he will or no.
No man can, even for a moment, rest without doing work; for everyone is caused to act, in spite of himself, by the Gunas born of Nature.
Because, no one ever remains even for a moment without doing work. For all are made to work under compulsion by the gunas born of Nature.
Verily none can ever remain for even a moment without performing action; for, everyone is made to act helplessly indeed by the qualities born of Nature.